Woodworker's Journal 1992-16-5, страница 67

Crosscutting Table Saws

The Ryobi BT-3000 and Makita 2711 siand apart from the rest of the bench-tops. Not only are they top-of-lhe-line machines in all respects, but both have sliding table-, with bar-type miter fences that adjust 45-degrees in either direction (Photos 5 and 6). I he sliding tables enahle you to make precise crosscuts, miters and compound miters in wide or long stock. In my tests, both tables were highly accurate and easy to use.

While the Makita seemed a bit more powerful than the Ryobi, the latter is more sophisticated: The sliding table has four quick release levers that enable you to mount it on cither side of the blade Mounted on the right side, you can use the crosscut table in conjunction with Ihe accessory muter/jigsaw table. Optional accessories tor the Ryobi include nniter/jigsaw mounting kits, wide table kit. a 40 in. miter/rip fence, metal work stand. • t.u)« > ihro.it plate, miter clamp, and dust bag. Makita offers an optional metal work stand, dado throat plate and extension bars to increase rip capacity Nt.iku.i also has a nice feature the other saws don't: an electric brake that brings ihe blink in i quit k halt as soon as you shut off the saw, Ryobi. on ihe other hand has a highly efficient dust pickup system (see Dust Control).

they run aL slightly different no-load speeds (see chart l.

The Ryobi BT-3000 has a unique belt-and-pulley drive to offset the arbor above the motor housing. In theory, anyway, the belt places less stress on the armature shaft, extending the life of ihe motor.

Quality Under the Table

More important than motor or drive type is the quality of the bearings and other motor/drive parts, as well as the precision of machining in the other undercarriage parts, such as the lilt and elevation mechanisms. Any slop in the motor shaft (arbor) or undercarriage parts will result in excessive vibration, inaccurate settings and blade runout (wobble), all of which affect performance. A look underneath the table tells the story. Tilt the blade at an angle between 0-45 degrees, then grasp the motor housing or blade carriage assembly and try to move it. Any slop here indicates play in the tilt/elevation mechanisms or flexing in the blade carriage brackets, both of which can contribute to inacurate cuts. Also shake and twist the blade lightly to check for slop or play in Ihe saw arbor (the shaft the saw blade attaches to).

Tables and Base Cabinets

Because portability is a consideration with benchtop saws, most use lighter-gauge materials for parts than you can expect to find on the floor models.

Tables All saws except Ihe Delia

Photo 3: The accurate, self-lacking fence on the Skil 3400 locks quickly with a pull-down lever—a feature I like.

and AV1T saws have casi aluminum tables. Cast-iron tables ami other com ponents are generally preferable on full-size table saws he* aiise (hey 're less likely to warp or become damaged, but the lighter-weight tasi aluminum tables make belter sense on ihe small bench-top machines. Surprisingly, one of the least expensive saws, the AMT 4K10 has a cast-iron table While more durable than the tables on ihe oilier saws, n does add considerable weight to the unit for n's relatively small table si/e. The Delta, on the othet hand, has a reinforced-polyesici plastic table and optional table extensions 1 did notice some minor flexing m ihe plastic (able and extensions. although I noticed no warpage in lhem, and ihe flexing didn't appear to all eel ihe cutting accuracy of the saw. By the way. lie fore you buy any table saw lor accept delivery on a mail-order one), make sure the table has been milled perfectly flat. You c an do this bv placing a straightedge diagonally across the table in both directions. If the table is warped or otherw ise damaged, either ask lor a replacemeni lable or another unit. None of the saws I tested had warped tables, but occasionally, one does slip by ihe manufacturer's quality-control department.

Also make sure the table extensions attach perfectly flush to the main lable. On some of the early Ryobi BT-3(KM)s. the sliding cutoff table was slightly higher than the main table. If you have one of these early units Ryobi will send

you a retrofit kit ai no charge to lower ihe sliding table to ihe proper height.

Ihe two extension wings that come Willi ihe Sears saws uill eventually align wiili the main table, but only after considerable fiddling around with the seven hex head machine screws used to

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Photo 4: The AMT has one of the best miter gauges—large, sturdy, accurate, and easy to read, with adjustable slops. The gauge on the Skil is a close second.

attach each extension. (Over three pages in the assembly manual are devoted to showing you how to do il—a real exercise in patience?)

Base Cabinets Mosi of the saws have base cabinets made of light-gauge stamped steel. I he Makita. Reliant, and Skil have thicker, but lighter, plastic-bases lo me. ihe plastic bases seemed lo he as durable as their steel counterparts especially the one on the Reliant. I didn't drop the saws off the bench to find out. though. Also check ihe location ol the mounting holes on the saw base. On Ihe AMT. Delia. Ryobi BT-2500 and bolli Sears saws, the holes are inside the

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